Next Up on Book Club: Fatal Consequences/Fatal Series

Politics can be murder...

Lieutenant Sam Holland has no sooner accepted Senator Nick Cappuano's proposal than she's back on the job. A woman has been found brutally murdered and evidence points to Henry Lightfeather, a senator and close friend of Nick's. While Sam investigates, Nick stands by his friend—complicating his own bid for reelection, and causing tension between the couple.

As Sam's investigation reveals a scandal that rocks the capital, Nick and Sam discover that the biggest threat to their future might be someone from her past...

Join us Thursday, August 11, for a discussion of my new Fatal book as well as a preview of what's ahead for Sam, Nick and the DC gang in Fatal Destiny and Fatal Flaw! I'll be giving away a complete set of the Fatal books, so be sure to comment to be entered to win!

Book Club: Knock Me Off My Feet by Susan Donovan

By: Aly Hackett

About the Book: Autumn Adams never planned to follow in her mother's footsteps as Chicago's answer to Martha Stewart—she can't cook, doesn't clean, and would rather play soccer than discuss the joys of white bathtub grout. Then some lunatic starts sending her threats in the mail and Audie finds herself under the protection of simmering, sexy Detective Stacey Quinn, a man determined to examine her every nook, cranny, and ex-boyfriend in his effort to find the stalker. A disarming combination of macho cop and sweet charmer, Quinn is hard to resist. But with Audie's bad luck at finding and holding on to Mr. Right, she think it's best to keep her distance.

I love Audie and Quinn. More Quinn than Audie but they are both marvelous characters! My love for Quinn stems mostly from his Irish heritage – DUDE! A kilt and the pipes! - but in truth, he is funny, kind, sensitive and of course HOT! LOL! Audie just cracks me up! She is so smart and funny but the fact that she is exactly the opposite of her mother and such a klutz makes me chuckle.

But it isn’t just Audie and Quinn that made this book work for me. The supporting cast definitely enriches the story and adds plenty of flavor. Griffin with all his clothes – and his personality – and Stanny-O with his Frango mints create a well-rounded cast of characters. Add to that the Quinn family and this book hits all the great characterization points for me!

Since there are so many LOL moments in this book for me, I thought I would share a few.

This one made me laugh but also made me realize that Stanny-O and Quinn had a great relationship.

Not once in their four years together had Stanny-O altered his routine. He came in the doors to the District 18 police station, got buzzed through, and immediately reached into his top right desk drawer and pulled out a bright green box of Marshall Field’s Frango Mints. And every morning he shoved the box under Quinn’s nose and offered him one, apparently oblivious to the fact that Quinn had never once taken him up on his offer.

I think this next one made me laugh because it is so me

Audie grinned, then politely pushed past him into the middle of the room. She looked around his house again—charming, organized, clean, and comfortable. Her eyes fell to the gleaming floors.

“Damp mopped with two tea bags per quart of water, Quinn?”

He nodded.

“Wow.”

“Yeah, my brothers think I’m a freak.”

“Well, you are!” She laughed at him, suddenly spinning around to examine the spice rack over the stove. “A ha! Alphabetized! I knew it!”

He shrugged.

“The CDs, too?”

“Yes.”

But there are also many emotional and very moving scenes.

“How can everyone pretend they’re not sad?” She whirled on him. “Aren’t your hearts broken?”

“Hell, yes, they are.”

She shook her head. “I don’t get it.”

“Audie.” Quinn laid his palm gently against the side of her face. “We’re not pretending anything, but if there’s a choice between laughing and crying, the Quinns pick laughing every time. It’s better for the soul.”

And this one

“Faith is believing in something when there’s no possible way to guarantee it. Like believing that Kiley will get to live a full life. Like believing you and I are together for a reason. Faith is taking a chance, Audie.”

All in all Knock Me Off My Feet had everything I look for in a great read - humor, great characters, a fun and interesting story line and love.

Since Quinn is such a lover of Guinness, I figured Guinness Stew would be a fabulous recipe to share!

Ingredients

2 pounds stewing beef

3 tablespoons oil

2 tablespoons flour

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Pinch of cayenne

2 large onions, coarsely chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

2 tablespoons tomato puree, dissolved in 4 tablespoons water

1 1/4 cups Guinness

2 cups largely diced carrots

Sprig of fresh thyme

Chopped parsley, for garnish

Directions

Trim the meat of any fat or gristle, and cut into 2-inch cubes. Toss beef with 1 tablespoon of the oil. In a small bowl, season the flour with salt, pepper, and cayenne. Toss meat with seasoned flour.

Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over high heat. Brown the meat on all sides. Reduce the heat, add the onions, crushed garlic and tomato puree to the skillet, cover, and cook gently for 5 minutes. Transfer the contents of the skillet to a casserole and pour half of the Guinness into the skillet. Bring Guinness to a boil and stir to dissolve the caramelized meat juices on the pan. Pour over the meat, along with the remaining Guinness. Add the carrots and thyme. Stir and adjust seasonings. Cover the casserole and simmer over low heat, or in a 300 degree oven until the meat is tender, 2 to 3 hours.

And for dessert a nice bundt cake with just a touch of Bailey's :)

Ingredients

1 cup chopped pecans

1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix

1 (3.4 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix

4 eggs

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup Irish cream liqueur

1/2 cup butter

1/4 cup water

1 cup white sugar

1/4 cup Irish cream liqueur

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour a 10 inch Bundt pan. Sprinkle chopped nuts evenly over bottom of pan.

In a large bowl, combine cake mix and pudding mix. Mix in eggs, 1/4 cup water, 1/2 cup oil and 3/4 cup Irish cream liqueur. Beat for 5 minutes at high speed. Pour batter over nuts in pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then invert onto the serving dish. Prick top and sides of cake. Spoon glaze over top and brush onto sides of cake. Allow to absorb glaze repeat until all glaze is used up.

To make the glaze: In a saucepan, combine butter, 1/4 cup water and 1 cup sugar. Bring to a boil and continue boiling for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in 1/4 cup Irish cream.

I hope everyone enjoyed reading Knock Me Off My Feet. Audie and Quinn are one of my comfort reads that I go back to often! Susan is going to be popping in and out all day - as long as we don't have Blogger issues like last week - so feel free to post a question!

Next Up On Book Club: Knock Me Off My Feet by Susan Donovan

Autumn Adams never planned to follow in her mother's footsteps as Chicago's answer to Martha Stewart — she can't cook, doesn't clean, and would rather play soccer than discuss the joys of white bathtub grout. Then some lunatic starts sending her threats in the mail and Audie finds herself under the protection of simmering, sexy Detective Stacey Quinn, a man determined to examine her every nook, cranny, and ex-boyfriend in his effort to find the stalker. A disarming combination of macho cop and sweet charmer, Quinn is hard to resist. But with Audie's bad luck at finding and holding on to Mr. Right, she think it's best to keep her distance.

Join us on Thursday, August 4th, for a discussion of this book. The author will be dropping by to visit!

Book Club: Crazy Hot by Tara Janzen

By Ronlyn Howe

Regan McKinney, a studious paleontologist, isn't exactly accustomed to a life of high crime. But when a mysterious note from her missing grandfather leads her to a secret surveillance site maintained by a notorious special-ops task force, and headed by a smoldering ex-fighter pilot, even Regan can't resist the chase.

Regan McKinney is the quintessential good girl.

Quinn Younger is an American Hero bad

And from the first time Quinn walked in on Regan while she was changing clothes as a teenager, they’ve been Crazy Hot for each other, despite some rather desperate attempts to get each other out of their systems. Regan however changes everything when her grandfather suddenly goes missing and she finds a note with Quinn’s name on it. For the first time in her life she decides not to play it safe and to take matters into her own hands by hunting him down. Okay, to be fair, Regan tried to play it safe, but no one would listen to her. Her grandfather has a habit of wandering off a bit so no one is convinced that he’s in any sort of trouble.

Quinn however is in hiding, or laying low as he calls it, after being on the receiving end of a particular nasty ass whoppin’. And he’s not happy about it. When Regan lands in Cisco, UT he’s on her like white on rice, which turns out to be a really good thing because Regan has lead some seriously bad bad-guys right to Quinn’s hide out.

Quinn quickly sweeps Regan into his protection, straight into his car…much to her dismay.

“What about her car? Dump it?” the boy wonder asked and Regan’s eyes got even wider.

“Whoa. Wait a minute.” She moved toward the two men and the desk, working to control the tremor in her voice. “No car dumping. No way. Not my car. If you want to dump a car, dump this one.” She gestured at the car on her left, the ugliest piece of junk she’d ever seen. It had no paint, just four or five shades of black and gray primer. It had only half a dashboard. The rest was a snake pit of wires, gauges and gizmos. It had no backseat, just a hold full of junk. What it did have was an engine sitting under the open hood, a lot of engine even to her untrained eye.

While Quinn is dealing with Regan he sends Peter “Kid Chaos” Chronopolous on ahead to protect Regan’s sister Niki. Regan is so overwhelmed with her own situation that she doesn’t remember to warn Kid.

The doorbell itself was his first clue that this was not exactly cold-beer-and-ESPN territory. It was a naked angel-a highly detailed, metal-casted, anatomically correct naked guy angel with wings spread, tips touching, standing on a fiery sun. The doorbell button was the sun and it looked hot and molten, the depths of it’s amber crystal lit from within.

His finger hovered for a second, then two before he pressed it. From somewhere within the house, a guy screamed.

Shit! He jerked his hand back. Then he felt like a fool.

Shit. No wonder the old guy had left home.

There are so many things I can say about this book and series that I really don’t know where to start. CRAZY HOT is the introduction to the guys and gals of Steele Street code named SDF. Between the guys (super hot, super cool, world class bad asses) and the cars (the hottest of the hot muscle cars that aren’t made anymore due to pesky safety standards) there is so much testosterone pumping through Steele Street that the women have to be tough and strong to take them all on. But boy do those gals taken them on.

This series is balls to the wall fun with razor sharp turns that leave you wishing you had something more than just a lap belt to keep you secure.

I want to thank the wonderful Tara Janzen for joining us today and offering up an autographed copy of CRAZY HOT, the second book in the series, to one lucky commenter.

I’m going pretty basic with my recipes this week, being that it’s summer and Quinn & Regan stop for burgers and fries, I’ll offer up my garlic burgers and homestyle fries.

Garlic Burgers

Yields 1 burger

• 1/4 - 1/3 lb ground beef
• 4 cloves garlic, minced/crushed
• 1 dash liquid smoke
• pinch of salt and fresh ground pepper
• 1 tsp Worcestershire or soy sauce

Combine the beef with the liquid smoke, salt, pepper and Worcestershire or soy sauce. Split in half and flatten into a thin, flat patty. Spread garlic evenly over the surface of one patty, staying a little away from the edges. Place the other patty on top and press the edges in to seal.

Grill until done to your liking.

Homestyle Oven Fries

Makes enough for 2

• 3 medium Idaho or russet potatoes
• small pinch of hot Hungarian paprika
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp onion powder or granulated onion
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder or granulated garlic
• salt
• non-stick spray
• oil

Preheat oven to 425F.

Cut potatoes into steak fries. Make sure fries have been patted dry if the potatoes were stored in water. In a large bowl, mix together the potatoes with all of the spices, tossing well to ensure even coverage. Drizzle about 2 tsp of oil, tossing to combine.

Spread fries evenly on a cookie sheet lined with silicone or foil. Don't overcrowd. Bake for 30 - 45 minutes, depending on fry thickness, tossing every 10 to 15 minutes. Spray with non-stick spray about halfway through.

Next Up on Book Club: Crazy Hot by Tara Janzen

Regan McKinney, a studious paleontologist, isn't exactly accustomed to a life of high crime. But when a mysterious note from her missing grandfather leads her to a secret surveillance site maintained by a notorious special-ops task force, and headed by a smoldering ex-fighter pilot, even Regan can't resist the chase.

Join us Thursday, July 28, for a discussion of this book. The author will drop by with a giveaway of Crazy Cool!

Book Club: The McCarthys of Gansett Island by ME

Hi there!

Thanks for coming by today to talk about the McCarthys of Gansett Island! If you've already read the books, you know they were inspired by my love of Rhode Island's Block Island, located 14 miles off the state's south coast. As I described it in my author's note, it's the place time forgot, and that's just the way we love it.

I wanted to share some of the inspiration for the series, but first, let me tell you a bit about each of the books:

Maid for Love
The McCarthys of Gansett Island, Book 1

Maddie Chester is determined to leave her hometown of Gansett Island, a place that has brought her only bad memories and ugly rumors. Then she’s knocked off her bike on the way to her housekeeping job at McCarthy’s Resort Hotel by Gansett’s “favorite son,” Mac McCarthy. He’s back in town to help his father with preparations to sell the family resort and has no intention of staying long. When Mac accidentally sends Maddie flying over the handlebars, badly injuring her, he moves in to nurse her back to health and help care for her young son. He soon realizes his plans for a hit-and-run visit to the island are in serious jeopardy, and he just may be “maid” for love.

Fool for Love
The McCarthys of Gansett Island, Book 2

Joe Cantrell, owner of the Gansett Island Ferry Company, has been in love with Janey McCarthy for as long as he can remember. At the same time, Janey has been dating or engaged to doctor-in-training David Lawrence. When things go horribly wrong between David and Janey, she calls her “fifth brother” Joe, one of the few people in her close circle who lives on the mainland. Janey decides a few days with Joe is just what she needs before she goes home to the island to face her parents and family with the news of her broken engagement. It was bad enough for Joe loving Janey from afar, but having her in his house is pure torture. Will he take advantage of this opportunity to show her what they could have together? And what will Joe’s best friend and Janey’s protective older brother Mac have to say about it?

Ready for Love
The McCarthys of Gansett Island, Book 3

For four of the best summers of his young life, Luke Harris was in love with Sydney Donovan, a wealthy seasonal visitor to Gansett Island. Then Sydney went off to college and never came back. She married another man and had two children while Luke remained on the island, working at McCarthy's Gansett Marina and wondering what had gone wrong between him and the only woman he ever loved. Fifteen months after Sydney suffers the tragic loss of her husband and children, she's returned to Gansett to figure out what's next, and that may very well be a rekindled love affair with the one man from her past she’s never forgotten. But is she ready for a second chance at love?

People often ask me if the McCarthys are based on a real family. The answer is no, but McCarthy's Gansett Island Marina is based on a real place called Payne's Dock in Block Island's Great Salt Pond, also known as "New Harbor" (vs. Old Harbor in town where the ferries land). On my fictional Gansett Island, the harbors are known as North Harbor and South Harbor. Click on the link to Payne's to get a visual on how I picture McCarthy's. I spent a lot of time at Payne's when I was a kid because my parents had a boat and we'd go out there for at least a week every summer.

My dad owned an aviation repair company, and because they were always so busy in the summer, my dad "commuted" to work from the island. He used to get picked up by one of his employees in the morning for the short flight back to the airport on the mainland where he worked. My brother and I would pass the day with our mom at the beach, fishing for crabs and then racing the crabs down the dock, eating salt water taffy and Mrs. Payne's famous sugar donuts and basically having all kinds of great kid fun. Late in the afternoon, we'd watch the sky, waiting for the small plane carrying my dad to reappear. They'd fly low over the marina, tip the wings to let us know it was them, and my dad would appear in a cab from the airport a short time later. I haven't thought about that in a long time. I also vividly remember watching Princess Diana marry Prince Charles on a snowy black and white TV on the dock as we sweltered in the July heat. Ironically, I was also there years later when Diana died. There with my parents and young daughter, I made an early-morning call to my husband from the pay phone on the dock, and he told me the shocking news. I think I might've been the first person the dock to hear that she'd died.

When I'm out on Block Island later this summer, I'll take some pictures of the landmarks that inspired some of the other places I've mentioned in the series. One such landmark is The National Hotel, played by the Beachcomber in the books. The Paynes also own Payne's Harbor View Inn, which was the inspiration for McCarthy's Gansett Island Inn where Maddie works in Maid for Love.

To get to Block Island, we rely on Interstate Navigation and it's fleet of ferries. Joe Cantrell in Fool for Love is the owner of the fictional version, the Gansett Island Ferry Company. In a twist from real life, my college boyfriend is a captain for Interstate Navigation and used to love clove cigarettes the way Joe does. That's where the similarities end, however. (I wonder if he reads romance? Uh oh... LOL) I had a lot of fun visiting him in Block Island when we were dating and he was running the launch service that ran people from their boats moored in the Salt Pond to one of the other marinas in the Pond (ooh, is that an idea for a future character? Owner of the launch service? Hmmm). There's a great bar that overlooks the Salt Pond called The Oar, and it's FULL of thousands of painted and decorated oars that boaters and visitors have brought over the years. I never get tired of reading what people have painted on their oars. I can't believe The Oar doesn't have a website, but there's a picture here that gives you an idea of the place. I'll take some others when I'm there this summer.

My brother and I used to love to walk from Paynes to the Block Island Boat Basin next door (also home to The Oar) to get ice cream sandwiches. I've had a lot of ice cream sandwiches in my day, but none of them were ever as good as the ones we got there.

So there's some of the inspiration behind my series. Does it make you want to visit Block Island? :-) Thanks for coming by today to talk about the series. I'm curious to know who your favorite character is. Favorite scene? Which guy wouldn't you kick out of bed? Luke? Joe? Mac? Grant? Big Mac? LOL! Do tell! I know you have questions about future books, and I've got answers. Grant's book is next, and yes, there will be books featuring Evan, Adam and Tiffany, too. For Grant's book are you Team Abby or Team Stephanie? I will be giving away books from my backlist so don't forget to leave a comment!

In honor of Block Island, I'm sharing recipes for New England Clam Chowder and Clam Fritters, two things you can always get at the Payne's Dock restaurant (run by Stephanie on Gansett Island), along with Mrs. Payne's sugar donuts, but I suspect the donut recipe is locked up at Fort Knox.

New England Clam Chowder

I had to search pretty hard for a recipe that didn't include canned clams. Really? That's not authentic clam chowder. Anyway, I found this one from the Dockside Guest Quarters and Restaurant in York, Maine.

1 quart shucked clams (add water if too dry)

1/3 pound salt pork

1 large onion, minced

2 ribs celery, minced

2 large potatoes, diced

1 bay leaf

1/2 teaspoon thyme

1 quart of milk, scalded (may use half cream for thicker soup)

1/2 cup of butter

1/4 cup of flour

Salt and pepper

Drain and chop clams, reserving liquid (may substitute 5-pound can chopped clams). Fry salt pork in a heavy pan until all fat is rendered; add onions and celery and brown lightly. Add butter; melt. Blend in flour and stir constantly for 5 minutes. Add clams, potatoes, clam liquid, bay leaf, and thyme. Cook until the potatoes are tender. If desired, add fish and/or shellfish to make seafood chowder.

Serves: 4

Clam Fritters (also known in my family as Belly Bombers)

1 pt. clams
1 3/4 c. sifted flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs, beaten
1 c. milk
2 tsp. grated onion
1 tsp. butter

Drain clams and chop. Sift dry ingredients together. Combine egg, milk, onion, butter and clams. Pour into dry ingredients and stir until smooth. Drop batter by teaspoons into deep fat at 350 degrees or fry. Serves 6.

Launch Day Fun: Fatal Consequences

It's finally here! July 18! Fatal Consequences is available for sale all over the e-book-o-sphere!

The murder of two members of the Capitol Cleaning Service might’ve been just another homicide investigation—that is if one of them hadn’t been romantically involved with a married senator from Arizona. Lt. Sam Holland and her team are plunged into another complex case that at first seems open and shut. But as Sam tugs on the threads of the investigation she uncovers a deep, dark Washington secret that threatens the careers of some of the government’s highest-ranking officials. Racing to catch a killer before he can strike again, Sam and her fiancé, U.S. Senator Nick Cappuano, attempt to plan a wedding while her colleague Detective Tommy “Gonzo” Gonzales faces life-changing news.

Here’s a brief excerpt:

Nick approached her from behind, resting his hands on her shoulders and massaging the tense spots. He knew exactly where her stress collected, and it was all Sam could do to remain standing as his talented fingers hit all the right places. “It’s getting late, babe.”

“Did you clean up my desk again?”

“Maybe.”

“It’s a sickness. You have a sickness.”

“Guilty as charged.” He laughed softly and planted a kiss on her neck. Desire rippled through her. She was so easy where he was concerned, and he knew it. “What’s up with the case?”

The facts ran through her mind like a silent movie. “Until I get Lindsey’s report, I’m at a standstill.”

“Then let’s go home.”

Back in the day, Sam would’ve waited all night—if necessary—for the autopsy report and lab results. Now, though, she had a good reason to go home. She looked up at him. “Sorry for letting work invade our day off. Maybe one of these days we’ll succeed in actually scoring a full day off.”

“We can dream.”

She let him help her into her coat and lead her from the office. “I know you really needed the break.”

“Not your fault, and besides, I did get a day off from campaigning, so it’s all good.”

“We missed out on our early Valentine’s Day,” she said once they were in the car.

He reached for her hand, laced his fingers through hers. “Every day with you is Valentine’s Day.”

Sam smiled at him. “Even if we end up on different sides on this case?”

“We may not always agree, Sam, but we’re always on the same side.”

She relaxed into the heated leather seat and enjoyed the companionable silence. That was one of her favorite things about her relationship with Nick. Even in the quiet spaces between words, she was always in tune with him. In the past, when she’d been unhappily married to a manipulative man who wanted to control her every thought, she’d often been lonely even when he was sitting next to her on the sofa or lying next to her in bed. She had never once felt that way with Nick.

“What’re you thinking about over there?” he asked.

“I’m thinking about us.”

“What about us?”

“Could I ask you something and will you tell me the truth?”

He glanced at her. “Of course you can and of course I will.”

“When we’re together, do you ever feel lonely?”

“Lonely?” He released a short laugh. “That is one thing I never feel when I’m with you.”

“Good,” Sam said, relieved. “That’s good.”

Nick parallel parked on Ninth Street, killed the engine and turned to face her, reaching out to caress her cheek. “What’s that all about?”

“Sometimes, well…a lot of the time when I was with Peter, I remember being lonely even when he was right there with me. I was thinking that I’ve never felt that way with you, and I was hoping you hadn’t either.”

“I’ve never felt that way, and I’m glad you haven’t.” He reached for her, and she leaned into his embrace. “If you’re ever lonely, will you tell me?”

She nodded. “Will you?”

“I promise.”

“I doubt it’ll ever be an issue between us. Everything about this is different.”

“Yes,” he said, kissing her. “It is. Come on, let’s go in.”

I’m really excited to get Fatal Consequences out to readers this week! You can find it at the following places:

Carina Press

Amazon

B&N

iBooks

Sam and Nick’s big year continues on Aug. 22 when we begin to reveal the choices readers made back in February for their wedding. Watch this blog for the grand reveal over the 14 days leading up to the launch of the wedding novella, Fatal Destiny, on Sept. 5. As we reveal the wedding choices, we’ll have all new prizes and chances to win copies of the books.

To celebrate the launch of Fatal Consequences, tell me your favorite Sam & Nick moment and qualify to win a copy of the book. Because I'm on deadline for Fatal Flaw, I'm not doing a blog tour for FC, so there will be just a few chances to win free copies. I'll give away two copies here this week, with the contest closing at noon EDT on Friday, July 22. Thanks to everyone who pre-ordered or bought a copy on launch day. I so appreciate your excitement about the continuation of Sam and Nick's story!